Whenever I’ve attempted stargazing holidays (Kielder Water, La Palma) each time I’ve been thwarted by cloudy weather. So blessed with the dark skies of Norfolk, it was a no-brainer to get a telescope for the lodge to make up for previous disappointments and indulge in studying the heavens.
We hope guests will also take the opportunity to book the lodge for a memorable stargazing lodge holiday. If you don’t have your own telescope or binoculars, you are very welcome to use the telescope in the lodge and point it skywards. If you are new to astronomy it can initially be a little daunting – after all, you are literally staring into infinity. So what follows is my (weather permitting) attempt to help you have a memorable stargazing lodge holiday.
The Moon
The Earth’s closest neighbour tends to get overlooked by astronomers. But, because you can rarely miss it and a telescope can reveal incredible detail, it’s the ideal place to start. If the moon is nice and full, this article will point you to the top sites on the Moon, such as the Sea of Tranquillity (where Neil and Buzz landed back in 1969) and Montes Apenninus, its largest mountain range. Children will also enjoy trying to spot the moon rabbit!
The planets
Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn are the brightest lights in the sky and depending on where they are in their orbits, often visible by naked eye on a clear night. The big giveaway that you are looking at a planet rather than a star is that it doesn’t twinkle.
Observing the planets through a telescope can be a profound experience, but you’ll need to locate these ‘wandering stars’ first. You can use a dedicated App such as StarTracker, but it’s also fun to try and track them down by just looking up.
Venus is earth’s closest neighbour. It’s brilliant white and looks like the brightest star in the sky.
Mars, the ‘Red Planet’, is usually easy to spot due to its clear orange tinge. If you are lucky you may be able to spot its poles through the telescope.
Jupiter is easy to spot – it is distinctly larger than Venus and Mars and bright white. If you point the telescope at it, you may be able to see its big red spot (a 250mph storm the size of Earth that has been raging for at least 340 years) as well as four of its largest orbiting moons – Ganymede, Io, Callisto and Europa.
Saturn looks a little smaller than Jupiter and is yellowy white – but through a telescope this big ball of gas is surely the most beautiful sight in the night sky. Saturn’s seven rings are jaw dropping – one theory is that these are the remnants of one of its 50+ moons that collided into the planet. If you are lucky you may see the largest moon, Titan, which appears as a dim star close to the planet. If you aim to gaze at one thing over your stay, aim for Saturn!
The constellations
There are three simple star constellations I’d recommend you look for first. The most famous is The Plough (or The Big Dipper to North Americans). If you aren’t hugely familiar with medieval farm machinery, scan the skies for a big saucepan. This often serves as a jumping off point to other constellations.
In winter evenings, you will find The Plough towards the north (behind the lodge). Follow the right hand side of the plough upwards to find the North Star (or Pole Star). Whereas other stars seemingly rotate around the sky throughout the year, the North Star is always in the same spot and points to true north.
Orion is also very visible during evenings from mid-December, and you’ll find it off the deck to the South. It’s usually simple to spot the three stars in a row that make up Orion’s Belt, and from that be able to picture a hunter wielding his bow and arrow. If you point the telescope to Orion’s sword, which hangs below his belt, you should see Orion Nebula. This is a ‘star nursery’ – an enormous cloud of gas and dust in which new stars are forming. It is one of the greatest wonders in the sky.
It’s also worth taking a peek at the orange star that makes up Orion’s left shoulder. This is Betelgeuse, one the brightest stars in the sky, which is mind-bogglingly big – 1000 times the size of the Sun and nearing the end of its life.
Cassiopeia can also be seen all year around though is easiest to spot between September and October. Look to the rear of the lodge for a large ‘W’. However it requires a little bit of imagination to picture the mythological figure that it is supposed to represent – a vain queen who boasted about her unsurpassable beauty.
If you are lucky enough to be at the lodge around 12-13 August, Cassiopeia is the part of the sky in which to observe the annual Perseids meteor shower – a trail of rocks and ice left by the Swift-Tuttle comet. When looking for shooting stars don’t bother with the telescope – simply lie on your back, gaze towards Cassiopeia, and watch the show.
Hopefully that’s enough to whet your appetite for a lodge stargazing holiday. For the best chance of success, we’d recommend booking a lodge break in Autumn or Spring (when the nights will be longer and darker but more comfortable to be outside for longer than in Winter) and away from a full moon (so the stars aren’t masked by its light). This dark sky calendar will help you plot the ideal date.